Corn cutter



Oct. 22, 1935. H. J. WHEELER I 1 CORN CUTTER Filed Nov. 19, 1932 e Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENT OR H. J. WHEELER CORN-CUTTER .Fi-lec l'Novt 19 1932 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS Q a. KW

Oct. 22, 1935.

J. WHEELER CORN cuwmn Filed Nov. 19,-1932 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 ATTORNEYS Get; 22, 1935.

H. J. WHEEL-ER CORN CUTTER rileq Nov. 19, 19:s2

6 Sheets-Sheet 4 v ATTORNEYS CORN CUTTER Filed NOV. 19 1932 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Oct. 22, 1935. H. J. WHEELER 7 CORN CUTTER Patented Oct. 22, 1935 UNITE STATES OFFI 18 Claims.

This invention relates to a rotary corn cutter, and more particularly to a rotary type of corn cutter in which, if the corn-is sufficiently matured, the caps of the kernels are cut off from the earand the soft inside parts or the kernels then scraped, and'which, if the corn'is immature or of unusually small kernels, the milk from these kernels is scraped without cutting. The product therefore comprises the caps of the kernels and the creamy inside portions of the kernels,'this product being generally known as cream style corn. The invention also comprehends slitting the kernels so as to cut .the severed cap in two and also comprehends taking one or more slices from the kernel, in addition to its cap, when the kernels of the cob are unusually large.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a. rotary cream style corn cutter. Difierent types of cream style corn cutters have heretofore been proposed but no satisfactory rotary type has been provided. In a rotary type, ears of corn to be decapped and scraped are fed through a rotary head which carries the gaging, cutting and scraping means by which the cream'style cornis produced. This type of machine is extremely compact and can be operated at a very high rate of speed. The difflculties heretofore encountered in alining, gaging, cutting, scraping ant conveying ears of corn in such rotary machines have rendered this type of machine unsuitable for producing cream style corn.

Another object of the present invention is to provide means for accurately aliningthe ear of corn to be operated on in a position coaxial with the rotary head so that the ears feed into the rotary head smoothly and are always in proper position for the succeeding operations of cutting and scraping the kernels.-

Another object is to provide means arranged immediately in advance of the rotary knives for opening up the knives in accordance with'the' diameter of the ear and to provide spring means for restoring the opening up means and knives to a normal closed position as the ears successive ly pass. This means is so designed and the operative connection between this means and the knives so adjusted that the knives are opened up only far enough to receive the ear and are there-' after opened up the remaining distance by the scrapers associated with the knives. By this means the depth of the cut is determined by the scrapers and the means for initially opening up the knives are rendered inoperative, thereby reducing wear and noise in the opening up means since this means is preferably mounted on a stationary part or the machine'whereas the knives and scrapers are, of course, mounted on a rotary head. v

Another aim is to provide a rotary cutter head in which the depth of the cut is gaged from the cob of the ear. By thismeans the knives are at all times prevented from cutting into the cob and in the event that the ears are immature the caps of the kernels will not be cut at all but the milk will be squeezed from these kernels by the scrapers.

A further purpose is to provide a rotary cutter in which the knives can be adjusted to take two or more slices from the kernels. By this means if the kernels are unusually large, instead of cutting one large cap 'portion from each kernel, this cap portion is taken off in two slices so that the resulting product is substantially the same as cream style corn from smaller and less matured ears. The invention also comprehends providing slicing knives at the feed end of the' rotary cutter which slit the kernels of large and matured kerneled corn lengthwise of the ear so that the caps are also cut in halfas well as being cut away from the kernel in slices by the rotary knives. A further object is to provide a rotary head which carries both cutter elements and scraper elements and in which all of the cutter elements are connected so as to move toward and from the axis of the travel oi the ear uniformly. The scrapers are also caused to so move in unison but special provision is made to provide a limited play for these scrapers whereby they can follow irregularities in the corn cob and extract all of the inner parts of the kernels regardless of irregularities in the formation of the cob.

A further object of the present inventlonis to provide for the ready removal and replacement of the rotary knives and other wearing parts by rendering the support for the means which open up these knives readily removable an i thereby exposing these knives for adjustment or replacement as they become worn. A further purpose is to render the operating heads of the knives closely spaced relation that both engage the ear 5 of corn being operated upon at the same time and to drive the discharge spur wheels faster than the feed spur wheels and to provide a lost motion' between these wheels so that the ear of corn being operated upon is definitely discharged from the ried by the rotary head, the tension of thesesprings requiring adjustment in accordance with the centrifugal forces imposed upon the scraper and cutter fingers.

Further objects are to provide such a machine which consists of comparatively few parts, considering the function which it performs; which is sturdy, durable, easily kept in a clean and sanitary condition; and will operate efficiently for a long period of time without requiring repair or replacements.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary. top plan view of a rotary cream style corn cutter embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, partly in section, of the same.

Figs. 3, 4, ,5 and 6 are vertical, transverse sections on the correspondingly numbered lines qn' Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section taken on line 1--1, Fig. 6 and showing a front elevation of the means for opening up the cutters and scrapers in accordance with the size of the ear. about to be operated upon.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of one of the fingers shown in Fig. 7 and which form part of the mechanism for opening up the cutters and scrapers.

Fig. 9 is aperspective view of a type of head adapted to be attached to the finger shown in Fig. 8, this head forming the element which engages if; ear of corn being presented to the rotary cut- Fig. 10 is a fragmentary elevation similar to Fig. 7 and showing a modified form of heads which engage the ears of corn and form part of the means for opening up the rotary cutters and scrapers in accordance with the size of the ear.

Fig. 11 shows a perspective view of this form of head in which cutting blades are provided for slitting the kernels radially when large kerneled. matured ears are being operated upon.

Figs. 12 and 13 are vertical sections taken along the correspondingly numbered lines on Fig. 6. Fig. leis a view similar to Fig. 13 and showing an increased number of rotary cutter heads provlded and these cutter heads so disposed asto take two slices from the kernels, one comprising the cap and the other a second slice under the cap.

Fig. 15 is a perspective view of one of the single tooth pinions which forms a part of the driving connection between the several cutter and scraper fingers and also forms a part of the connection between these fingers and the means for opening these fingers up to accommodate all sizes of ears.

Fig. 16 is a perspective view of one of the scraper fingers and which is also so designed that a cutterhead can be attached thereto.

Fig. 1'1 is a. perspective view of one of the cutter heads adapted to be attached to the scraper finger, shown in Fig. 16. 7

Fig. 18 is a vertical section taken on line lt-lt, Fig. 6. i I a i Fig. 19 is a section taken on line l9-l 9, of Fig. 13 and showing in section the single tooth pinion shown in Fig. 15.

Fig. 20 is a perspective view of the spring adjusting means to which one end of each of the tension springs shown in Fig. 18 can be adjusted.

Fig. 21 is a section taken on line 21-21, Fig. 6 and showing the driving and driven gear for the rotary head.

Fig. 22 is a section taken on line 22-22, Fig. 21 and showing the screw connection between the driven ring gear of the cutter head and the rotary ring thereof.

Similar characters of reference indicate like parts in the several figures of i the drawings.

The cream style rotary cutter is shown in the accompanying drawings as mounted upon a pedestal having an oblong top 25 from which a feeding trough 26 projects. The outer end of this feeding trough 26 carries a pinion (not shown) which supports a feed chain 21 of any usual and well known form, the inner end of this feed chain being carried and driven by a pinion 28 and being arranged to discharge-the ear of corn between.-

the feeding spur wheels of themachine.

The driving mechanism of the machine comprises a main drive shaft 29 which is suitably joumaled in bearing stands 30 carried by the standard 25 and driven in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 1 by a suitable driving pulley 8 I. This main drive shaft 29 carries a large gear 32 which drives the rotary cutter head indicated generally at 33, and also carries a sprocket 38. This sprocket 34 is connected by a chain 85 with a sprocket 36 fast to a shaft supported in bearings 39 on the standard 25. This shaft, as best shown in Fig. 4, has keyed thereto a worm 40 which meshes with a worm gear M. This worm gear 4| is fast to a shaft 42 which is journaled in bearings 43 on the standard 25. At one end, this shaft 42 carries a pinion M which meshes with a relatively large front gear wheel 45 and a relatively small gear wheel 46, as best shown in Fig. 5. The gear wheel 45 is keyed to a hollow shaft or sleeve 41 and is formed at its opposite end to provide a sprocket 48. This sleeve 61 is journaled in a bracket 49 which rises from the standard 25. The sprocket 68 carries a chain 50 which drives a sprocket 81, this sprocket 5| being fast to the shaft 52 which connects with and drives the sprocket 28, as best shown in Fig. 1. It is therefore apparent that a positive drive is provided between the driving pulley 3i and the sprocket feed chain 21. Upon leaving the feed chain 21 the ears of corn are caught two feed spur wheels and 6| which are driven and held centered with reference to the axis of the rotary driving head by mechanism which preferably is constructed as follows:

The gear wheel 45 meshes with a gear wheel 62 which is keyed to a. sleeve or hollow shaft 63, as best shown in Figs. 2 and 5, and this sleeve is journaled in the bracket 49 which also carries the sleeve 41 of the gear 45. Within the sleeve 41 is arranged the shaft 64 and within the sleeve 62 is journaled a similar shaft 65. These shafts and sleeves are suitably held against displacement by collars and adjacent the gears 45 and 42 the shafts 64 and 65 are each pinned to one element 66 of a universal 61. Each of these universal elements carries a second pin 68 which projects radially outward therefrom and is adapted to be engaged by a pin "on the corresponding gear 45 or 62. These pins 88 and 6.! form the driving connection by which power is transmitted to the between -per and lower slideways l3 provided-in a bracket Id which is suitably bolted to the pedestal 25 and are held against lateral displacement by plates 15 which are bolted to the sides of this bracket. The shafts ll extend through the vertically movable bearing blocks l2 and bracket 16 and at their front ends carry the upper and lower feeding spur wheels 65 and Si, as best shown in Fig. 2. The bearing blocks ii are pressed toward one another by leaf springs 36, one end of each of these springs it being secured to the bracket so and their free ends bearing against the correspond ing sides of arms l! which are secured to the bearing blocks 72. The free ends of the arms ll of the upper and lower bearing blocks it are connected together by a pair of toggle links 38 and at their center these toggle linirs 78 are plvotaliy connected to e. bearing block it! which slides on a stub shaft tell which is rigid with and projects outwardly from the standard 3:3.

It is therefore apparent that as the gears dd and 52 turn, through the pins E8 and es, the universal joints or are also turned and the shafts ll rotated, thereby rotating the feeding spur wheels and ti. As an ear of corn enters between the spur wheels til and ti these spur wheels open up, the bearlng blocks l2 moving outwardly against the resistance of the leaf springs l5 and the shafts ll turning about their universal joints or. However, each of the spur wheels til and (ii is caused to move an equal distance irorn the center of the axis of travel of the ears icy the toggle iinsage "iii which, through the sliding block is compels the bearing iii to move in unison an equal distance away tram the center of the stub shaft ears oi corn are discharged from chine by a pair oi spur wheels the and tile which are arranged at the discharge end of the rotary cutter head indicated generally at and are d iven and held equidistant from the center of travel oi the ears of corn in substantially the same manner as the feeding spur wheels and For this purpose the gear wheel so (Fig.5) meshes with a similar sized gear wheel to, both of these gears and being fixed to the shafts etc and sea and joumaled in a bracket ills. These shafts this and 65a connect with the driven spur wheels e in and tits in the same er that the shafts dd and 65 connect with the feeding spur wheels ti and 8d and these discharge spur wheels the and Bio are uniformly held at an equal distance from the center of the line of travel of the cars by a toggle linkage similar to the toggle linkage is provided for the feeding spur wheels fill and 6!. A separate description of this mechanism is therefore deemed unncces sary and the corresponding parts of the dis charge spur wheel driving and equalizing mechanism are given the same reference numerals as it is described in detail with reference to the feeding spur wheels and are distinguished therefrom by the sub-letter a.

It will be noted that the pair of gear wheels lfiand 35, as best shown in Fig. 5, are smaller than the corresponding gear wheels t5 and 652 which drive the .feeding spur wheels. ,This is purposely done so that the discharge action of the discharge spur wheels 8011 and cm is faster than the feeding actionpf the feeding spur wheels. It will be noted upon reference to Fig. 1

pins to on the gear wheels as and 62 will be withthat the ear of corn being operated upon is simultaneously engaged by both the feeding and discharging pairs of spur wheels. Since the discharging pair of spur wheels 68a and 51a. are driven faster than the feeding spur wheels 68 and 58 it is apparent that the' discharge spur wheels and the gears es and 85 (Fig, 5) will run ahead of the feeding spur wheels so and GI- and their gears 65 and 62. When this occurs the drawn and advanced away from the pins 59 on the universal elements 6&- As soon as the butt end of the ear of com escapes from the feeding spur wheels $8 and iii these feeding spur wheels will stop until the pins to again catch up to and engage the pins to and again establish a drive for the feeding spur wheels til and iii. By this time the ear of corn being operated on has been discharged from the machine, all parts of the rotary cutter mechanism have returned to their normal starting position and the mechanism is again in condition to receive the next succeeding car of corn. e provision of this lag between the discharge of the cob and the feeding of the next succeeding ear is essential to, the proper operation of the machine and the proper functioning oi the gaging elements.

Between the feeding spur wheels so and st and the discharging spur wheels tile and tie is arranged the rotary cutter mechanism 33. The ear of corn to be operated upon first passes through a circular opening at in a stationary dislz 95 which is secured by screws 932 to a U-shaped supporting plate this iii-shaped supporting plate rising from and being suitably secured by '35 bolts 94 to the standard 25. lhe face or the feeding side ofthe disk M is provided with an annular groove 95 in which is rotatabiy mounted a ring 538. This ring carries an upright arm. t l

tothe upper end of which is secured a tension spring es, the other end of this tension spring so being anchored to a post 99 which rises from the standard 25. The ring dd also carries a plurslity of forwardly projecting spaced pins Mill. iour being shown.

The ring as is held in its groove 95 by four fingers iul which, as best shown in Fig. 8, are flat and are provided intermediate their ends with holes Hi2. These fingers Wt are secured to ill the stationary ring fitby screws lot which pass 50 through the holes 32. Each of the fingers tilt is provided with jaws lei which engage a .corresponding pin ltd so that as each finger lei is moved the movable ring 95 is caused to rotate in its groove Q5. Since all of the screws lot are arranged equidistant around the stationary ring 96 it is apparent that the movement of any one finger use will cause a corresponding movement of all of the other fingers 96! and that thereby the fingers necessarily move toward and from the axis of travel of the ears of corn in unison. The free end of each of the flat fingers Hill is recessed as indicated at 885 and is provided with a screw hole E96. In this recess 595 is fitted the flange ll of a corrugated head Hill, the corrugations extending lengthwise of the ear of corn presented to the heads and being adapted to engage the ear and being moved outwardly thereby. Each of the heads sec projects through the opening of the stationary ring 70 for a purpose which will presently appear. 4

It is sometimes desirable, especially with relatively hard and matured corn, to slit the kernels before the ears enter the rotary cutters. This can obviously be accomplished by mounting cutter blades H in the corrugations of the heads I08, these cutter blades being thereby relatively closely spaced and slitting the kernels of the passing ears as the ear forces the heads I08'and fingers IIO outwardly to accommodate its size. This adaptation of the invention is illustrated in Figs. and 11. In each form, however, the ear in passing the fingers IOI engages the heads I08 and-opens them up to a size determined by the diameter of that portion of the ear engaged by these elements. This movement of the fingers "II is then transmitted to open the rotary cutter and scraper fingers as hereinafter more fully described.

The rotary cutter mechanism is rotated at a relatively high rate of speedby the large gear wheel 32 on the main drive shaft 29, the machine shown being designed to operate at a pulley speed of 1800 R. P. M. The drive shaft gear 32 drives an equal sized ring gear I which has a circular iopening I2I at its center for the passage of the ears of corn therethrough. This ring gear I20 is provided with a spacing flange I22 which bears against a rotating disk I23, this gear and ring being connected to rotate in unison by a plurality of connecting screws I 25, as best shown in Figs. -2I and 22. chamber I between the ring gear I20 and the rotating disk I23 and the inner end of this chamber is preferably closed by a flange I23 which forms one wall of the passageway through the rotating disk and gear. The rotating disk I23 is journaled in a stationary rim .I2I whichis suitably v mounted on the standard 25 and is held against this rim I21 by a circular retaining plate I28.

The hubs I of a plurality of single-tooth pinions I3! are Journaled in the rotating disk I23, thesebeing arranged in spaced annular arrangement around the disk, six being shown. The tooth I32 of each of these single-tooth pinions is arranged in the chamber I25 between the ring gear I20 and its rotating disk I23 and the rear end I33 of each of the single-tooth pinions I3I is reduced and journaled in the ring gear I20. The front end of each of the single-tooth pinions, as best shown in Figs. 15 and 19, is also reduced as indicated at I30 and is provided with a threaded opening I85. An arm I35 fits over the reduced front end I30 of each of the single-toothpimons I3I and is rigidly connected thereto by a screw I31 which forces the arm into rigid frictional engagement with the hub I30 of the single-tooth pinion, as best shown in Fig. 19. The outer or free end of each of the six scraper and/or cutter arms I36 is hook shaped, as best shown in Fig. 16, the end I38 of the hook shaped part forming a scraper end which is adapted to ride along the decapped kernels of corn and scrape thesoft interior portions therefrom. Each of the six arms I 30 is also adapted to be made into a cutter or decapper by the mounting of a suitable cutter head thereon. For this purpose the hook shaped outer end of each of the arms I3% is provided with a channel I30 on its front face, this channel extending substantially radial to the passing ears of corn. In the center of this channel a threaded opening IIiO'is provided in each cutter arm and each of these channels is adapted to receive the flat base IOI of a cutter head I52. The flat base ItI of the cutter head I02 is provided with an elongated slot I03 which receives the shank of The flange I22 provides an annular angles to and forward from the base I and the l edge I46 of the blade I extends at a sharp angle to the base I so as to provide a shear cut in decapping the kernels. It is therefore apparent that each of the arms I36 can be used either as a scraper or both as a cutter or scraper by mount- 10 ing or failing to mount a cutter head I02 thereon. In Fig. 13 alternate arms I36 are provided with cutter heads I42. It is also, apparent that the distance, radially outward, of the cutting edge I46 from the end of the hook shaped scraper I38 de- 15 termines the depth of the out. Since the scraper is arranged in rear of its cutter head it is apparent that the depth of the out, i. e. the amount of cap taken oil, isgaged from the cob. Consequently, the cfitters can never dig into the cob 20 and contaminate the product with pieces of cob. It is also apparent that by the provision of the elongated slot I03 in the cutter head that a substantial range of adjustment is provided for the cutters and that these cutters can be adjusted so as as to take two slices from the kernels. For example, in operating on very large and tough kemeled corn it would be undesirable to cut one large cap because the caps in the product would be too large for cream style corn of first quality. so When this condition is encountered all the arms I36 can be provided with cutter heads I42, as shown in Fig. 14 and, as also shown in this figure, the cutter heads I42 on alternate arms are arranged a greater distance from the scraper ends as of their arms than the others are. By this means two slices will be taken from the kernels, the'first slice comprising the cap and being taken by those alternate cutters which are spaced a short distance from their scraper ends and the second slice 4,9 being a ring shaped slice which is taken by the other cutters. When corn of this character is being operated upon it is, of course, desirable to also employ the form of head shown in Figs. 10 and 11 on the arms IOI so that the caps of the g5 kernels are additionally severed by the knives I I0.

All of the arms I38 are caused to operate substantially in unison although those of the arms which function exclusively as scraper arms (the alternate arms unprovided with cutter heads, 50 Fig. 13) are afiorded a limited amount of free movement to follow the irregularities of the corn and to scrape off all of the useable material from the cob. In other words, as any one of the arms J30 is moved outwardly or inwardly all of the other arms I36 are moved correspondingly in the ring I50, the alternate notches IEI are designed for use with the cutters and the other notches 15hr are designed for use with the scrapers. As

shown in Fig. 13 the alternate arms I30 are pro- -vided with cutter heads I4i2 and the notches IBI associated with these arms are closely fitted to the teeth I32 of the corresponding single-tooth pinions I3I. On the other hand, those notches :5

corresponding single-tooth pinions I3I.

play which permits them to adapt themselves toirregularities in the cob.

The rotary cutter head is designed to operate ata speed of 1800 R. P. M. and it is apparent that adjustable spring means must be provided to oppose the centrifugal forces imposed uponthearms I36 and to insure their firm contact with the ear of corn. For this purpose, as best shown in Fig. 18, the single-tooth pinions I3I associated with the alternate arms I36 which function wholly as scrapers, are provided with radially extending pins I53 which are connected to tension springs I54. In addition the rotary ring I50 is provided with a plurality of spaced radially projecting pins I55, three being shown, and these are connected to tension springs I56. All of the pins and springs are arranged within the chamber I25. The free end of each of the springs I54 and I56 is anchored to a tension adjusting device I5I which is shown in perspective in Fig. 20 and in section in Fig. 18. Each of these tension devices I5'I is in the form' of a pin which extends across the chamber I25 and at its front end is joumaled in the rotating disk I23. The rear end is threaded and extends through an opening provided in the ring gear I20 and is slotted as indicated at I56 so that it can be turned. Each of these pins is'formed with an annular shoulder I59 which bears against the front or inner face of the ring gear I20 and is provided with a small hook shaped arm I60 on which the end of the corresponding spring I54 or I56 is caught. Lock nuts I6I are provided for holdingthese pins in their adjusted positions. It is apparent that eachof the 'six pins I5I shown, can be turned to impose the requisite degree of tension on the corresponding springs I54 or I56 and after the adjusted tension is obtained the lock nuts I6I can be tightened down to hold this adjustment.

It is apparent that some means must be provided for initially opening up the arms I36 in accordance with the size of the ear to be operated upon. Thus, if a small ear is passingthrough, the arms I36 will be opened up to only a limited extent whereas if a large ear of corn is passing through it will be opened up to a greater extent. This opening up of the arms I36 should be less than to the cutting line desired so that the arms I36 gage their own depth of cut and so that this is not done by the initial opening-up means. This initial opening up of the arms of the scraper and/or cutter arms I36 is effected through motion derived from the arms IOI which are carried by the stationary disk 9|. For this purpose, as previously explained, the heads I08- carried by these arms IOI extend rearwardly through aperture in the plate 9| and this extended part of each of the heads I0! is rounded so that these heads jointly form a substantially cylindrical bearing surface I09 as indicated in Fig. 12. This bearing surface I09 isengaged by the outer ends of three arms I65. These arms are fixedly secured to short shafts I66, which, as best shown.

in Fig. 6, are journaled in collars I61. One end of each of these collars is threaded and screws into a hole provided in .the rotating disk I23 and this collar is also provided with two annular flanges which act as spacers to maintainthe arms I65 in spaced relation .to the rotatingdisk I23 which carries them and in proper engagement with the curving surfaces I09 of the heads I06. The shafts I66 extend within the chamber I25. To the end of each of the shafts I66, within the chamber I25, a single-tooth pinion I68 ispinned, the tooth of this. pinion meshing with an opening I69 provided in the loose ring I50.

It is therefore apparent thatas a large ear of the ring to move the other single-tooth pinions I3I and since these latter single-tooth pinions are fixedly secured. to the cutter and scraper corn enters the orifice 90 in the fixed ring 9| it arms I36 (Fig. 13) the cutter and'scraper arms,

together with their operating end, will open up to exactly the proper size to receive the ear. It

is obvious that the closer the means for opening up the cutter and scraper arms are to the cut-' ting and scraping means themselves, the more accurate will be the operation of the device. The present invention arranges the heads I00, arms I65 and cutter and/or scraper arms I36 in such close relation that for all practical purposes the cutter and scraper arms are opened up to exactly as desired for each passing ear, this opening up movement being less, however, than is necessaiy to bring the cutting edges fully out to the line along which the cut is to be made.

- Thus the screws I3I '(Fig. 13)of the cutter arms I36 are adjusted so that the cutting edges on these arms are within the cutting'line after the opening up arms I65 have moved these cutting arms I36 out to the full extent as determined by the size of the passing ear. By this means when the cob strikes the scrapers I38 the cutting and scraping arms I36 will be opened up further. This further movement insures two things: First, the gaging of the depth of the cut is done exclusively from the cob by the scrapers and is not in any way influenced by the initial opening up means, and, second, the opening up 50 arms I65 (Fig. 12), after the scrapers I38 have engaged, are moved out of contact with the heads I08. This eliminates the frictional rotary contact between these parts while the ear is being scraped and not only reduces the noise but also 55 reduces the wear between the arms I65 and the heads I08. The purpose of providing means for initially opening up the cutter knives is to allow the entering of large ears and not to set or determine the depth of the cut, this being determined from the cob line and the distance, radially, of the cutting edges from the scraping edges of the scraper. By providing a definite ratio between the operation of the opening up arms I 65 and the cutter arms I36, this ratio being such, say, that the cutter arms- I36 are never opened up a. distance greater than one-sixteenth of an inch from the cutting line, the depth of the cut is always determined by the cob line and at the same time, during the cutting operation, the arms I65 (Fig. 12) are drawn out of engagement from the relatively stationary heads I08 and there is 'no undesirable noisy and frictional contact between these parts. There is a further advantage turn of the arms IOI and the heads I06 (Fig. '7) to their closed position after the ear has passed beyond the heads I08, wholly independently of the other parts of the opening up mechanism. By this means the heads I08 contract the moment the ear passes and are in position to receive the next ear, whereas the ear being operated on is required to actually pass the cutting and scraping arms before these arms I36and the opening up arms I65 return to their normal contracted positions.

The parts of the machine which require the most frequent replacement are, of course, the cutter heads on the arms I36, as shown in Fig. 13. In order to get at these cutter heads conveniently all that is necessary is to remove the three screws 92 (Fig. '7) which hold the stationary plate' SI in position in front of these knives. By so doing the stationary plate 9i can be removed, the rotary cutter heads I42 sharpened or replaced and the stationary plate 9| and its screws 92 thereafter conveniently replaced.

Operation With power applied to the driving pulleythe operation of producing cream style corn from a previously husked car will be as follows:

A succession of ears are placed tip first in the feeding trough 26. These are engaged by the feeding chain and propelled toward the spur wheels 60 and GI. This feed chain is driven (Fig. 1) from the pulley 3 I, shaft 29, sprocket 34, chain 35, sprocket 36 (Fig. 4), shaft 31, worm 40, worm wheel 4|, shaft 42 (Fig. 5), gears 44 and 45, sleeve 41 (Fig. 2), sprocket 48, chain 55 (Fig. 1), sprocket 5|, shaft 52 and feed chain sprocket 28.

When the tip of the ear being fed enters between the feeding spur wheels 60 and SI it forces these spur wheels apart, the shafts 7| carrying these spur wheels pivoting about the universals 67 (Fig. 2). In so moving apart, the bearing blocks I2 ride up in their slideways 13 against the resistance of the long leaf springs I8, the tension of which is adjusted by the yoke at their rear ends. The spur wheels hold the ear of corn in centered relation to the apparatus by the toggle joint arrangement shown in Fig. 2. As there shown, the arms TI which project rearwardly from the bearing blocks I2 connect with 'the ends of a pair of toggle links I8 and the center pivot of these toggle links I8 connectwith a. slide I9 which works on a pin 80 which projects outwardly from the standard I4 supporting the bearing blocks. It is apparent that by this arrangement the movement of the two spur wheels 60 and 6| will necessarily be uniform toward and from their common center.

The driving universals I0 for the spur wheels 60 and 6| are continuously rotated from the continuously rotating sleeve 41 (Fig. 2) and gear 45thereon. This gear 45 has a pin 69 which meshes with a pin 68 on the universal. This gear 45 also meshes with another gear 62 also carrying a driving pin 69 which meshes wQth the driven pin 68 on the upper universal 67.

The driving spurwheels 60 and GI thereby ad-,

vance the ear in centered relation into the aperture 90 of the fixed plate 9|. The ear thereby engages the heads I08 (Fig. 7) which are removably mounted on the arms IOI, these arms- IOI being pivoted at I03 to the stationary plate 9|. These arms IOI are all caused to move outwardly and inwardly in unison by their jaw and pin connection I00, I04 with the rotating ring 96 mounted in the stationary plate 9I. These arms m are all held in their retracted position by the tension spring 98 (Fig. 2) connected with the' movable ring 86.

, The remainder of the apparatus (except for the discharge spur wheels 60a and 6Ia) is being 5 rotated at 1800 R. P. M. As the ears move the heads I06 on the arms IOI outwardly (Fig. 12) those parts of these heads I08 which project through the opening in the stationary plate 9| rotate the loose ring I56. The rotation of the 15 loose ring I50 causes the rotation of the other single-tooth pinions I3I against the resistance of the tension springs I54 and I56. The cutter and/or scraper arms I36 (Fig. 13) are secured to the front ends of these single-tooth pinions I3I 2g and are thereby moved outwardly. In this manner the opening movement of the arms I65 (Fig. 12) causes a corresponding movement of the cutter' and/or scraper arms I36, these arms acting in much the same manner as a camera shutter. The ear of corn thereuponis fed by the feeding spur wheels 60 and 6| through the opening at the center of the scraper and/or cutter arms I36 and since some of these arms I36 (preferably alternate arms) are, provided with cutting heads I42, the cutting edges of the heads sever the caps from the kernels. It is essential that the cutter and/or scraper arms I 36 are not opened up fully 'to the proper cutting line through this opening up device. These arms I36 are so opened up to within, say, one-sixteenth of an inch of the cutting line desired so that the depth of the cut is determined by the scraping ends 838 of the arms I36 which the cob subsequently engages. Thus I each ear actually forces the knife and cutter 40 arms I36 a small distance greater than that set by the opening up means, this movement of the arms I36 drawing the arms I65 (Fig. 12) free from the heads I08 and reducing the noise and wear between these elements which would otherwise result. As the corn passes through it is then engaged by the ends I 38 of the arms I36 which scrape the soft exposed interior parts of the kernels from the cob. The depth of the cut is determined by the distance of the cutting edges I46 50 from the scraper ends of the arms I36 so that at no time is there any danger of the machine cutting into the cob, the opening up means being completely inoperative. It will be noted that the large sized notches I6Ia (Fig. 18) of those alternate arms I36 which act only as scrapers (Fig. 13) and are unprovided with cutting heads I42, afford a limited free movement of these purely scraper arms I36 so that these scraper arms can follow the irregularities of the cob. 50 The rotating disk I23 which carries the cutter and/or scraper arms I36 and also carries the arms I which serve to open up these cutter and/or scraper arms I36, is rotated at 1800 R. P. M. from the main drive shaft 26 (Fig. 1) through 5 the large gear wheel 3| and ring gear I20. which is fixedly connected to the rotating disk I23 by the screws I24. The rotating disk H3 is also journaled in its rotating movement (Fig. 6) by the gages the discharge spur wheels 60a. and 6Ia which are mounted .in the same manner as the 1'5 61 provided for the driving spur wheels and GI..

These universals are connected to a pair of intermeshing spur wheels 45 and 85 which are continuously rotated from the pinion M (Fig. 5). It will be noted that the pair of gears 46 and 48 for the driven spur wheels 60a and GIa is considerably smaller than the corresponding gears 45 and 62 for the driving spur wheels 60 and GI. Therefore when the ear of corn bridges the two sets of spur wheels (Fig. 6) the power is transmitted only through the discharge spur wheels 6012 and BI a and the feeding spur wheels 60 and ill are dragged along by the ear of corn. This is possible since the driving connection for the feeding spur wheels 60 and 6 I includes the pair of pins 68 and 69 (Fig. 2) between the gears 45 and E2 and the two universals 51. Since the discharge spur wheels 80a and 6Ia are being rotated at a higher rate of speed the feeding spur wheels 60 and SI are dragged along and the pins 68 and 69 are retracted from one another until the butt of the ear passes beyond the feeding spur wheels 80 and BI. I'hereupon the feeding spur wheels 60 and BI will not again start to rotate until the pins 69 have caught up with the pins 68. This provides a lag in the operation of the feeding spur wheels 60 and GI which prevents another ear of corn from being fed into the machine until the ear of corn being operated upon has been discharged and the parts have all returned to their normal inoperative positions shown.

When it is desired to split the kernels before they are decapped the heads I08 of the arms IBI (Figs. 7 and 9) are substituted by the heads shown in Figs. 10 and 11 which are provided with cutting blades I I0, these cutting blades cutting into the ears along longitudinal lines as the ears pass through the orifice 90 in the fixed plate 9|.

When it is desired to take two cuts from the kernels, that is, to decap the kernels and thereafter take a second cut from the kernels all of the arms I36, as shown in Fig. 14, are provided with the cutting heads I42 and alternate cutting heads I42 are spaced outwardly a greater distance from the axis of movement of the ears than the others are. It is apparent that this arrangement permits of cutting two slices from very large kerneled ears of corn.

From the foregoing it is apparent that the present invention provides, considering the function which it performs, a very simple, inexpensive and rugged rotary corn cutter for producing cream style corn. The machine also will operate to remove all of the desired parts of the kernels of the corn regardless of the size of the corn or its condition and operates at a high rate of speed, thereby insuring the maximum production. The machine is also easily kept in repair and is easily kept clean and sanitary. The machine also cannot become jammed or clogged under any normal conditions of operation and can be operated by one having comparatively little mechanical skill.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, a plurality of cutter elements movably mounted on said head and adapted to engage and decap the kernels of the passing ea s, a plurality of scraper elements movably mounted on said head and adapted to engage and scrape out the soft internal portions of the decapped kernels, means connecting said cutter and scraper elements to move toward and from the axis of travel of said ears substantially in unison and a lost'motion connection between said scraper elements and said connecting means whereby a limited free movement is permitted said scraper elements to permit them to follow irregularities in the ooh. I

2. Ina rotary corn cutter, a. rotary cutting head, means for conveying the-ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, a rotatable notched ring mounted coaxially with said head, a plurality of pinions journaled in said head and meshing with the notches of said ring, a plurality of cutter arms fixedly secured to some of said pinions and being adapted to engage and decap the kernels of the passing ears, and a plurality of scraper arms secured to the other of said pinions and being adapted to engage and scrape out the soft interior portions of the decapped kernels, the teeth of those pinions which carry the scraper arms being loosely received in their notches whereby a limited free movement of said scraper arms is permitted to permit them to follow irregularities in the cob. a

3. In a rotary corn cuttena rotary head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotat ng said head relative to the ears of corn, an element movably mounted on said-head and adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the ears, means carried by said head for moving said element toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and including an arm pivotally supported on the front side of said head and movable toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and means to open said element in accordance with the size of the ear about to be operated on, comprising a plurality of non-rotating jaws mounted to embrace the ear 0 therethrough, said jaws having rounded outer surfaces engaged and traversed by said arm, and

cutting blades provided on said jaws, said blades 45 extending longitudinally of the ears of corn and slitting the kernels thereof prior to the operation of said element.

4. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to the ears of corn, an element movably mounted on said head and adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the ears, means carried by said head for moving'said element toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and including an arm pivotally supported on the front side of said head and movable toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and means to open said element in accordance with the size of the ear about to be operated on, comprising a support detachably secured to a stationary part of the machine, a plurality of jaws pivotally mounted on said support and arranged to embrace the ear in advance of said rotary head and to be opened in accordance with the size of the ear passing therethrough, said jaws having rounded outer surfaces engaged and traversed by said'arm, the detachability of said support permitting ready access to said rotary head and the operating element front side of said head and movable toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and means to open said element in accordance with the size of the ear about to be operated on, comprising a support secured to a stationary part of said machine, a rotatable ring mounted on said support coaxially with the com, a plurality of fingers pivoted to said support to move toward and from the axis of travel of said ears, a jaw carried by each finger, said jaws being arranged to embrace the ear in advance of said rotary head and to be opened in accordance with the size of the ear passing therethrough and said jaws having rounded outer surfaces engaged and traversed by said arm, and means operatively connecting each of said fingers with said ring whereby they are compelled to open and close in unison.

6. In a rotary corn cutter, ,a rotary head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to the ears of corn, an element movably mounted on said head and adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the ears, means carried by said head for moving said element toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and including an arm pivotally supported on the front side of said head and movable toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and means to .open said element inaccordance with the size of the ear about to be operated on, comprising a support secured to a stationary part of said machine, a rotatable ring mounted on said support coaxially with the corn, a plurality of fingers pivoted to said support to move toward and from'the axis of travel of said ears, a jaw carried by each finger, said jaws being arranged to embrace the ear in advance of said rotary head and to be opened in accordance with the size: of-the ear passing therethrough and said jaws having rounded outer surfaces engaged and traversed by said arm,

means operatively connecting each of said fingers with said ring whereby they are compelled to open and close in unison, and spring means operatively connected with said ring to urge said fingers inwardly.

7; In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, a rotatable notched ring mounted coaxially on-said head, a plurality of pinions journalled in said head and meshing with the notches of said ring whereby they are rotated substantially in unison, arms fixedly secured to said pinions and being adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the passing ears, another pinion journalled in said head and meshing with said'notched ring, a shaft fixed to said lastpinion and projecting forwardly therefrom, an arm mounted on said shaft and movable toward andfrom the axis of travel of the ears of corn, and means to open said first named arms in accordance with the size of the ear about to be operated upon, comprising a support secured to a stationary part of said machine,a rotatable ring mounted on said support coaxially with the com, a plurality of fingers pivoted to said support to move toward and from the axis of travel of said cars, a jaw carried by each finger, said jaws-being arranged to embrace the ear in advance of means operatively connecting each of said fingers with said last named ring whereby they are compelled to open and close in unison and spring means urging all of said fingers and arms toward the axis of travel of said ears.

8. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary cutting 10 mechanism, a pair of ear feeding spur wheels arranged in advance of said cutting mechanism,

a pair of ear discharge sp'ur wheels arranged in rear of said cutting mechanism, said pairs of spur wheels being closely spaced to simultaneously engage an ear of com, a power source, a positive drive between said power source and said discharge pair of spur wheels, and a drive for rotating said feeding spur wheels at a speed less than said discharge spur wheels including means for disconnecting said feeding spur wheels from their drive to permit said feeding spur wheels to rotate faster than provided through their drive and providing a lag in the operation of said feeding spur wheels after being so rotated faster than 23 provided through their drive.

9. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary cutting mechanism, a pair of ear feeding spur wheels arranged in advance of said cutting mechanism, a pair of ear discharge spur wheels arranged in rear of said cutting mechanism. said pairs of spur wheels being closely spaced to simultaneously engage an ear of com, a power source, a positive drive between said power source and said discharge pair of spur wheels, and a drive for rotating said feeding spur wheels at a speed less than said discharge spur wheels and including a pair of sleeves positively rotated in' unison from said power source, a pin carried by each sleeve, said pins being arranged oif center from the axes 40 of said sleeves, a shaft joumalled in each sleeve and operatively connected with each driving spur wheel and a pin projecting laterally from each shaft and arranged-in the path of the corresponding first named pin thereby permitting said feedmg spur wheels to rotate faster than provided by said sleeves and providing a lag in the operation of said feeding spur wheels after being sorotated faster than provided by said sleeves.

-10. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary head,

, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to the ears of corn, an element movably mounted on said head and adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the ears, means carried by said head for moving said element toward and from the axis of travel of said ears, non-rotating means mounted independently of said head to actuate said last named means to open said element part way to its cutting position, and means engaging the scraped cob for subsequently further opening said-element to its proper cutting position.

,11.-In a high speed rotary corn cutter, a single rotary head rotating about an axis, means for conveying the ears of corn endwise through .said head, means for rotating said head relathe remaining portions of the kernels, said outting and scraping edges being connected to move in unison so that the scraping edge of the scraping device is at all times disposed inside of the cutting line of said cutting device and the depth of the cut thereby determined by the engagement of said scraping device with the cob and whereby said cutting and blunt edges closely follow the undulation of the cob surface while'traversing the entire length of the ear.

12. In a high speed rotary corn cutter, a single rotary head rotating about an axis, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relatively to said ears, an arm pivotally mounted on said head and having an integral blunt end projecting laterally toward the cob so as to act on said ear as a scraper and as a gage, a cutting member adjustably carried on the advance side of said arm immediately adjacent said blunt end and adjustable toward and from the axis of travel of the ears, said last named cutting member being provided with a cutting edge disposed inside of the scraping line of said blunt end and adapted to sever the kernels'prior to their being scraped whereby the depth of cut of said cutting member is determined by the engagement of said blunt end with the cob, and means for volving housing having an internal annular chamber between said rotor and ring, means for, conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, a plurality of elements pivotally mounted to extend through the front side of said rotor and each carrying an element adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the ears and means arranged within said chamber and connected to said pivotally mounted means for-moving said elements toward and from the axis of travel of said ears substantially in unison.

14. In a rotary corn cutter, a single rotary head rotating on a horizontal axis, comprising a front rotor and a ring fixed to the rear side of said rotor, said elements being formed to provide a revolving housing having an internal annular chamber between said rotor and ring, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, a plurality of elements pivotally mounted to extend through the front side of said rotor and each carrying an element adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of the ears, means arranged within said chamber and connected to said pivotally mounted means for moving said elements toward and from the axis of travel of said ears substantially in unison, spring means arranged wholly within said chamber for yieldingly urging said elements toward said ears in opposition to the centrifugal forces imposed spring means.

15. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means-for rotating said head relative to the ears of corn, an element niovably mounted on said head and adapted to en- I ears and non-rotating means mounted independently of andin advance of said head to actuate 10 said last named means to open said element in accordance with the size of the ear about to be operated on and gage means arranged to engage the cob immediately adjacent said element, lengthwise of the ear, and control the positioning of said element independently of said nonrotating means until the ear of corn has passed thereby.

16. In a rotary corn cutter, a rotary'head, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head 1 relative to the ears of corn, an element movably mounted on said head and adapted to engage and remove portions of the kernels of said ears, means carried by said head for moving said element away from the axis of travel of said ears and including an arm pivotally mounted on said head and movable toward and from the axis of travel of said ears and means in advance of said head to initially move said element away from said axis of travel in accordance with the size of the ear about to be operated on comprising a plurality of non-rotating jaws pivotally mountedon a stationary part of the machine and embracing the ear. in advance of said rotary head as and opened in accordance with the size of the ears passing therethrough, and means for imparting the initial opening movement of said I jaws to efiect a corresponding outward movement of said arm and scraping and gaging means 40 arranged to engage the cob immediately adjacent saidelement, lengthwise of the ear, and control the position of said element, independently of said jaws, until the ear of corn has passed thereby.

17. In a high speed rotary corn cutter, a single rotary head rotating about an axis, means for conveying the ears of corn endwise through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, a cutting device pivotally carried by said head and having a cutting edge adapted to pass circumferentially about said ear and sever the kernels, a scraping and gaging device pivotally carried by said head immediately adjacent, lengthwise of the ear, said cutting edge, and having a blunt end which is relatively short and has relatively short contact lengthwise of the ear and adapted to scrape through to the cob, said cutting edge and blunt end being connected to move in unison so that the blunt end of the scraping device is at all times disposed inside of the cutting line of said cutting device and the depth of the cut thereby determined by the engagement of said scraping device with the cob and whereby said cutting edge and blunt end closely follow the undulation of the cob surface while traversing the entire length of the ear.

18. In a high speed rotary corn cutter a single rotary head rotating about an axis, means for conveying the ears of corn coaxially through said head, means for rotating said head relative to said ears, an arm pivotally mounted on said head and having a blunt end projecting laterally toward the cob so as to act on said car as a w 10 the cob, and means for holding the blunt end 0;.

said am in engagement with the ears in opposition ,to the centrifugal force of rotation, said blunt end being relatively short and having relatively short contact with the ear lengthwise thereof whereby said cutting edge is at all times gaged from an immediately adjacent portion of the cob while traversing the entire length of the ear.

. HENRY J. WHEELER. 

